1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a process for removing color and organic matter from wood pulp bleaching effluents, and particularly from effluents obtained from the bleaching of wood pulp produced by the kraft process.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As is well known, in the bleaching of pulp produced by the kraft process, a procedure is employed which involves contacting the pulp with a chlorinating agent, such as chlorine, chlorine dioxide, hypochlorite, or other chlorinating or bleaching agents. The lignin, tannin and other color imparting constituents in the pulp are chlorinated or reacted with the bleaching agent and are then removed from the pulp by washing the pulp with an alkali such as caustic soda. Several additional stages may be used, but the caustic wash effluent obtained is highly colored and may be responsible for as much as 80 percent of the total color discharged in the kraft pulping process effluents.
Large quantities of water are used in the pulping and bleaching of wood fibers and this results in the production of very large volumes of highly colored waste effluents. The disposal of these waste effluents has become one of the most serious problems facing the pulping industry today. This is particularly true of the colored liquid effluents from the bleaching process, especially where such effluents are discharged into bodies of water serving as municipal or industrial water sources. The problem has become even more critical in recent years as more and more governmental bodies adopt and enforce strict pollution laws.
This has resulted in a very large amount of research activity and there are now many proposals in the literature for the treatment of bleach plant effluents. Most of these are concerned with color removal of the first caustic wash stage effluent since it is the main source of color bodies originating during the bleaching operation. Acidic effluents, mainly composed of chlorination stage effluents, are usually neutralized before going to an aeration lagoon.
The most widely used method of decolorization at this time is lime treatment at a pH of about 11.5. Because of this pH, the technique is for economic reasons restricted to the caustic wash effluent. While the lime treatment has some merits, it also has the very distinct disadvantages that very large quantities of lime must be used and, moreover, the degree of color removal is not nearly as effective as is desired.
Other proposals for removing color material from the first caustic wash stage effluent have included alum coagulation, adsorption on resin or activated carbon and solvent extraction with high molecular weight amines.
As an example of a recent proposal for treatment of the caustic wash effluent there can be mentioned Gould's U.S. Pat. No. 3,531,370 issued Sept. 29, 1970. In that case about 500 to 2500 parts by weight of the lime were used per 1,000,000 parts of effluent but it was found to be essential to intermix cellulosic fibers into the effluent in sufficient amount to obtain effective settling. It was also found to be desirable to add lime mud from the mill recovery system to further improve settling.
Another recent proposal is described in Paleos U.S. Pat. No. 3,652,407 issued Mar. 28, 1972. In that case the caustic wash effluent from the bleaching stage is once again first treated with lime to remove at least a portion of the color bodies. After the lime treatment the caustic wash effluent is then acidified by mixing with a colored effluent from the chlorination stage and thereafter passing the combined effluents through a macroreticular adsorbent resin.
It is the object of the present invention to provide an improved procedure for removal of part of the color and organic materials from the bleaching stage effluents which will minimize the requirement of additional chemicals for color removal while also minimizing the amount of total bleachery effluent.